A Bodybuilding and Powerlifting Guide

“Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore,” said Andre Paul Guillaume Gide (1869-1951), a French writer and critic. Many years have passed but Gide’s wisdom is timeless and applies to individuals training for greater levels of physical conditioning. Reaching new levels of performance requires a deep inner desire to exceed current fitness thresholds. Eventually plateaus in progression call for athletes to distance themselves from comfort zones; in order to become leaner, stronger or more muscular.

Telling goal-focused trainees to work progressively sounds patronizing – almost like an infomercial solution – but it’s alarming how many report to fitness centers to constantly accomplish the same thing, over-and-over again. The real shame is when this redundancy turns from months to years! People tend to limit themselves by simply going through effortless motions. A new trainee can lift 10-pound weights everyday and never really get “toned.”

Becoming more active results in some preliminary changes in body composition, but results fade quickly if the stimulus doesn’t continue to evolve. Training progress requires an effort greater than what the body is comfortable with accomplishing. Otherwise, it considers the current body composition as good enough. The stimulus does not warrant any adaptation to transpire and stagnant periods keep a trainee from obtaining satisfaction with their program’s results. At this point, one would be equally served – yet probably more comfortable – at home, watching television.

On the other hand, if the training output is increased over subsequent workouts, the stimulus for change becomes rewarding. With heightened mental motivation and proper nutrition, change is demanded. Striving for average frequently results in settling for failure; while reaching high with great ambitions results in settling somewhere above average – perhaps within the realm of serious prominence. Always remember: you’ll never be great while aiming for good.

The human body is an amazingly adaptive organism. It’s a living multifaceted network of organic tissue, capable of reproduction, growth and maintenance. Resistance training capitalizes on skeletal muscle’s ability to adapt and grow, in response to training stress that is repeated and progressive. However, the extent of muscularity an individual can achieve is largely limited by their physical genetics and ability to cope with stressful training. Successful bodybuilders have great genetic disposition with phenomenal ability to handle intense training protocols. Competitive bodybuilders may further augment their potential with professional assistance and various ergogenic aids.

There are a couple general rules for body re-composition. To increase body mass, daily energy intake (food calories) must exceed daily energy output (activity levels). To decrease, activity levels must exceed caloric intake. This generalization gets complicated when differences between metabolizing lipids (fat) and proteins (muscle) are considered, but the basic laws of thermodynamics and metabolism remain the same.

To promote muscle growth, bodybuilders typically undergo periods of “bulking.” During this stage, two primary conditions are applied to encourage the desired effect: first, energy intake is elevated enough to assure the body that an increase in metabolically expensive muscle mass will not cause a life-threatening situation; second, a progressively applied resistance training program must signal a need for greater limit strength.

To lose fat, periods of “cutting” involve maintaining strength with progressive endurance training to provide a stimulus for a more fuel-efficient body composition. Stationary cycling for 30 minutes on level two won’t encourage much change or calorie consumption. However, repeated bouts of increasing intensities builds cardiovascular fitness; while burning increasingly more calories. A body burning 600 calories in 30 minutes on a stationary cycle is in far better physical condition than another burning half the calories in the same amount of time. To support metabolism and prevent muscle wasting, cycling calorie intake is common – using periods of long deficits contrasted by short-lived surpluses.

Before beginning any fitness program, it’s important to outline a goal; such as, obtaining more muscle or decreasing body fat. Recent research into concurrent training methods suggests periods of progressive strength and endurance training create diverse events within the body – many making the two incompatible. Inadequate nutrition may further stall results, due to the heavy demands a progressive resistance training program places on the body’s recovery processes.

Blinded attempts toward a progressive overload will not maximize training periods. The body and mind will naturally resist increasingly greater training stressors. A means to record training efforts must be employed, such as a training journal or spreadsheet. Every training session can be guided toward what would constitute a progressive response. Even in small increments, progress always means a change is taking place.

Strive to push your body into a new level of fitness by forcing an adaptation to occur through hard work and heavy resistance training. Be ready to lose sight of the shore for new-found results. Read numerous training and nutritional theories to maximize your knowledge base. Once you reach dimensions that satisfy your urge to train, switch to a standard maintenance routine and relish in your accomplishments.